INFOS

Created to celebrate the ten year anniversary of the abolition of apartheid, the entire history of segregation is displayed for us to see through Nkululeko, etched on the very bodies of the dancers. The company takes its name from a mythical district of the East Rand, where unemployment and crime reigned in the 1960s and 70s. This was where the pantsula culture was born, covering fashion, music, dance, gestural codes… and carrying a wave of protest. Via Katlehong echoes this. Pantsula dance reflects the latent violence of South African politics. Its land of origin is the street. Its firepower: the feet! With virtuoso skill it uses tap (percussive dancing with metal-bottomed shoes), step (a style of tap similar to the American time step) and the gumboot, a miners’ dance based on clapping the hands on the thighs and calves. This is a dance of reaction to oppression, unleashing a mad energy. This biting dance, conducted in unison, its prowess inciting our enthusiasm, tells us that, even if the fight is not over, we can still celebrate ten – and even twenty – years of freedom!